Konami's long-running vampire series makes its debut on the Game Boy Advance with Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. On a moonlit evening of 1830, cultist followers of Dracula prepare a ritual to reawaken their dark lord. Aging vampire hunter Morris Baldwin, accompanied by his son Hugh and apprentice Nathan Graves, storm the Austrian castle but are too late to stop the rite. <br><br>Camilla, leader of the cult, has just resurrected her master. Wishing to regain his full power in one final rite, Dr...

Konami's long-running vampire series makes its debut on the Game Boy Advance with Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. On a moonlit evening of 1830, cultist followers of Dracula prepare a ritual to reawaken their dark lord. Aging vampire hunter Morris Baldwin, accompanied by his son Hugh and apprentice Nathan Graves, storm the Austrian castle but are too late to stop the rite. <br><br>Camilla, leader of the cult, has just resurrected her master. Wishing to regain his full power in one final rite, Dracula captures Morris. He then hurls young Hugh and Nathan into a deep pit within the dark realms of Castlevania. Hugh, anxious to find his father, leaves Nathan on his own. <br><br>As Nathan, the next vampire hunter, you must survive the perils of the legendary castle while attempting to save your master from the powers of Dracula. Nathan carries the traditional whip and sub weapons -- dagger, cross, axe, holy water and stopwatch -- in his quest. Along the way, he can find new abilities, stronger armor, and other items from enemies he has defeated. Killing boss characters can often open up new pathways or allow Nathan to explore deeper regions of the castle. <br><br>New to this Castlevania is the DSS (Dual Setup System) card-combining feature. Nathan will find cards along his journey that fall into two categories: Action, named after Roman gods, and Attribute, named for mythical creatures like the cockatrice, griffin, and unicorn. By combining one of eight Action Cards with one of eight Attribute Cards, Nathan can reveal a hidden power. <br><br>Save points are located throughout the castle and can be returned to easily with the game's auto-mapping feature. The Save points allow a player to store progress, as Nathan will eventually level up and become stronger as he fights enemies. Only by defeating Dracula's minions and growing in Strength, Intelligence, Defense, and Luck will he become strong enough to defeat the Lord of Darkness himself.